Archive for the 'the Fall' Category

Everyone should be pretty much aware of not only the musical Genius of Mark E. Smith, but his unwillingness to co-operate and knuckle down for (usually feckless) presenter-led interviews. This Guardian arts blog round-up of the most horrid interviews is a perfect way to celebrate. It includes, of course, the infamous Newsnight appearance after Peel died.

One of my favourites is a recent interview by the lovely, if not a bit soft in the head, Lauren Laverne. So uncomfortable, yet enticing, to watch. Her poor treatment wasn’t very surprising. She introduced him by reciting the same old boring tale that the Fall wouldn’t have been stirred into action, were it not for the famous Sex Pistols Manchester Free Trade Hall gig in 1976. Shockingly, there was actually music in the North of England before the Sex Pistols came to play to a couple of hundred Mancunians. So I heard anyway.

I’m free! Well, I mean I’ve finally finished my exams. I’ve made it through university which is pretty much a shock to everyone I think. The exams went okay, here’s hoping they let me graduate! The end of last week has been rather a blur and it cumulated with a night out at Funky (which was held at the Welly Club) where the seemingly conjoined ‘Mr Beasley’ also performed. It was the best night out I’ve had for a while, but to be honest I’ve had so few nights out for a while, what with the exams and all. Me and my co-horts danced it up to the max and one of my friends decided (against my advice) to show off her party trick. This showcases her magnificent sense of balance by placing a full pint of lager on her head. Fortunately the glass didn’t smash as it (predictably) fell to the ground and we were just left with a moderately sodden dance floor. Still, it’s impressive when it works! I’m going to be looking at jobs this week and getting my PHP up to scratch in order to hopefully enhance my employability. It’s nice to know that as I’ve been studious, the rest of the world has carried on as normal:

According to Pitchfork the latest Fall tour has ‘Descended into Chaos’. Ah, M.E.S. is playing up and God’s in his heaven, all’s right with the world! Actually, placing the blame at the foot of Mark E Smith is somewhat unfair this time; his only mistake was to let the Fall play with some MySpace band plebs whose leader decided to throw a banana skin at him. Apparently he found Smiths behaviour frustrating. Well durr, had he even heard of ‘The Fall’? Was he surprised? Did he expect polite banter and straight-faced professionalism? The Fall went off stage to chants of USA! USA! USA! Seriously, were there any real Fall fans at this gig? You don’t get such behaviour in Manchester. It’s worth reading the full eyewitness report at Pitchfork for such gems as; “MARK E. SMITH a.k.a MR. BURNS”. Bless ‘em.